What are they made of?

Traditionally, bricks are made of ceramic; created by the action of heat and cooling. They can also be made of clay, shale, soft slate, calcium silicate, concrete or shaped from quarried stone.

What are they used for?

Bricks are use as a construction material for building, pavements, bridges, etc. They've been proved as one of the most durable construction material, and that's why they're so popular. Nowadays, although the building might be constructed with a different material, bricks can be used for the facade. That means they can have a decorative use as well.

How many types of brick are there?

Generally, there are three types of bricks:

Grade SW: is brick designed to withstand exposure to below-freezing temperatures in a moist climate.

Grade MW: is brick designed to withstand exposure to below-freezing temperatures in a drier climate.

Grade NW: is brick primarily intented for interior or backup brick. It may be used exposed; however, it can only be used in regions where no frost action occurs.

What is the meaning of brick laying techniques?

Brick laying techniques refers to the different ways you can built with bricks, especially how they are united with cement or mortar.

Describe 2 brick laying techniques

1. Gather all the materials you need to start your project before beginning. When you have mixed the masonry cement and started laying brick, you have to use the mortar up and strike your joints before quitting.
2. 2Pour a concrete foundation if you do not have an existing slab, brickledge, or footing to work on. This must be level and below the grade of the finished ground so that the brick is all you see when your wall is finished.

1. 3Layout the wall you are going to work on, and mark openings like doors, windows, and any architectural appertanances you are including in your design. For beginners, a simple, square project like a planter box or mail box pedestal is best.

1. 4Place brick along the length of your foundation in stacks you can reach easily from your work area.

1. 5Space "mortar boards" about every six feet along the wall, or on each side if the project is small. This will allow you to grab mortar with your trowel as you work, and not have to move around too much.

1. 6Mix your masonry cement, or mortar. This can be done in a wheelbarrow for small projects, or a mortar box if you don't have access to a mortar mixer or cement mixer. Basically, to mix the mortar, you will use a ratio of three parts masonry sand (builders sand, if it is very clean), to one part masonry cement. Add water to the dry materials and mix to a consistancy like pudding. Too dry, and it will be difficult to "set" the brick in the mortar bed, too wet and the brick will sag.

1. 7Place a few shovels of mortar on each board, splashing the board first with water so the mortar "keeps", or stays wet enough to use.

1. 8Start at a corner, and using the trowel, scoop up mortar and place a 4 to 6 inch wide band on the footing or slab about 1 inch thick. Set a brick down in this "bed" of mortar, and tap it down with the handle of your trowel, until it is level, parallel to the line of your wall, and the edge is plumb. Repeat with 6 or 8 brick, using the edge of the trowel to cut away the excess mortar that is shoved out from under the brick as you go.

1. 9Set another course of brick, starting at the corner, on top of the first course. If you are turning the corner you began at, you will set each course half a brick back from the previous course, so that each course is staggered half a brick. If you are turning the corner where you began, put the first brick in the first course so that it is square, and lay a few brick in this direction also.

1. 10Keep the height of the brick the same using a spirit or carpenter's level, and keep the end joints (head joints) equal. The standard bed and head joints are 3/8 inch, but this can be adjusted to your preference, up to 3/4 inch or even more.

1. 11Lay up several courses on each end of the wall you are going to lay first, these are the "leads", then you can attach a piece of builder's line at the top of each brick as you lay up the remaining brick in this wall, keeping them aligned and level.

1. 12Strike the head and bed joints with a "jointer" or "joint striker" when the mortar has begun to set. The jointer is a piece of tubing whose diameter is the same or slightly larger than your joint spacing, bent in an "S" shape. Hold the tool on one end, and rub it along the mortar joint between your brick with the curved portion of the tool to smooth out the mortar joint.

1. 13Brush the face of the brick with a "foxtail" brush to wipe away excess mortar and finish smoothing the joint. It takes a lot of practice to be able to tell when the mortar is set properly to strike and brush the joints, but basically, when it is hard enough to touch with your finger and not leave an impression, it is ready.

1. 14Continue laying the brick until you are level with the leads you laid up, then begin at the ends or corners laying either in another direction, or straight up with another lead.

Click here to watch a video about bricklaying:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gT80FQ7NQOo

What are their advantages and disadvantages?

Advantages:

Aesthetically, bricks are very appealing. So they can be use for facades.

They don't require any painting, so there is no need to maintain them.

They're durable.

Disadvantages:

They're expensive.

Their surface can be damaged in extreme whether.

In order to be endurable, the laying most be perfectly made.

They add a lot of weight to the structure.